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Watching Transformers
Cynic Jester
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
After seeing Transformers 2 recently, I got an urge to start watching Transformers, as in the cartoons, but I've no idea what's worth watching and what I should skip.
So PA, for someone who has only watched random episodes of whatever has been aired on TV, where should I start?
So PA, for someone who has only watched random episodes of whatever has been aired on TV, where should I start?
Cynic Jester on
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The original series from the 80s was better than the later incarnations, in my opinion, but that could be old-fogeyism talking.
i did recently watch all of the more recent Transformers Animated, which is awesome and you should watch! too bad they didnt add another season
beast wars also, watch all of beast wars
Unicron: I've summoned you here... for a purpose...
Megatron: NOBODY SUMMONS MEGATRON!
Unicron: Then it pleases me to be the first.
G'damn. That voice will never be replicated.
So the original 80's cartoons and movie thanks to some help from nostalgia and unabashed 80's rock still remain my favorite incarnation.
Beast Wars followed by the less successful Beast Machines, at least as I recall managed to develop a fairly complex plot as far as Transformers is concerned.
The stuff that was shown on Cartoon Network like Armada, Energon etc. in my opinion was some sort of deformed offspring of Transformers trying to be shoe horned into a sort of Pokemon competitor, which I think failed pretty horribly, though I understand the Armada game for the PS2 was surprisingly playable.
For me, I can't stand Transformers Animated. The look and theme of the show is like a sort of stunted Teen Titans approach to Transformers.
I'd start with the 80's stuff (movie especially) then move to the Beast series and finally all that newer stuff if you still have an interest.
If you have no nostalgic attachment, the original series is terrible if you're not 10 years old or younger, and I say this as someone who used to rush home to watch it after school every day in the third grade. The plots are mostly nonsense, the world rules are wildly inconsistent and there are animation errors all over the place.
I'd recommend going to the TF wiki page for the G1 cartoon reading a few summaries, and then deciding whether anything is going to insult your intelligence beyond tolerable bounds.
I thought Beast Wars was pretty good. Haven't watched any of the other series.
Beast Wars was a great series, although keep in mind the computer animation was done in the 90s, so it's not going to be Pixar quality. (In most episodes the robots don't have shadows, for example.) Excellent characterization and almost all plots made sense. There were some overarching plots and a lot of great homages to G1. Much more sophisticated than G1.
Beast Machines had better graphics than Beast Wars, but much worse plots and characterization. It was the sequel to BW, but by different writers. There were also a lot of plot holes.
After BM, Robots in Disguise was released. A lot of fans hated this series, which basically took place in an alternate universe. (Different characters, Prime is a firetruck, the Predacons fight the Autobots.) Frankly, though, I found it to be in the spirit of G1, except with less animation errors, a lighter attitude, and more slapstick. This means the drawbacks of G1 also apply . . . "Wait, the Predacons are attacking a . . . diamond mine in Antarctica? Wait, there are sewers in Antarctica?"
After that came the series known as Armada, Energon, and Cybertron. Armada was shoddy. I watched a small amount of Energon, but hated the way they'd animated the robots. (They were CGI models which were then cel-shaded. Distracting. Bleh.)) I didn't watch Cybertron, so no comment on that. (These three are also in an alternate universe.)
Transformers: Animated was the most recent cartoon series. It is in yet another alternate universe. Prime is a rookie leader of a crew of misfits. Enjoyable fluff. Also some good G1 and even Beast Wars homages. ("Wreck-Gar dares to be stupid!") The animation is much different than any other version of TF; more exaggerated and organic-looking. (Not organic as in "human flesh", but in terms of being flexible, if that makes sense.) I got used to it quickly, though.
Disclaimer: I may have missed some series, I lost interest for a space after Armada and Energon.
I didn't like beast wars because quite frankly, I couldn't get over the transformers not being cars and so on. But a lot of people seem to like it.
I liked Robots in Disguise okay, but at that point I was sort of too old for what it was selling, I think.
edit: oh, if you really want a trip, watch some of the G1 cartoons that came out following the movie (I think they did one more season of them or something.) They got truly wacky.
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat
What little of Cybertron I saw when I was still awake at 8 or 9 or AM or whenever it was it came on, it was more of the same with Energon - cell shaded CGI.
I could never get into any of the series after the original cartoons. I thought I was just old and cranky about the world changing, but then I tried and couldn't get into the originals again, either, so I'm just old and cranky, not specifically about anything changing. It is an 80's cartoon, and like all of them, the show was as much a commercial for the toy line as it was a show.
The following episodes are hilariously awesome:
The following episodes are hilariously bad they're awesome:
The movie is wall-to-wall cheesy goodness, though.
Beast Wars can be very, VERY hard to look at if you're used to modern 3D stuff, but watch it anyway. The plots and characters are damn good stuff. Beast Machines is fine too, though a little rougher.
You can pretty much ignore all the Japanese animated shows that came after that (Robots in Disguise, Energon, Cybertron, Armada), since they're pretty poo to varying degrees.
I'm actually watching Transformers: Animated right now, and it's pretty good. Despite the somewhat more lighthearted style it manages to be less cheesy than the original series, and much better put together (as in, they go to great pains to give all the robots their own distinct personalities and plenty to do, whereas G1 had legions of wasted background characters). Yeah, it looks like Teen Titans, but if you can get over that it's pure Transformer goodness.
Beast Wars is pretty good. Widely regarded as the best TF show, it's also unusual in that they're beasts. Unfortunately, 90s 3D.
Armada, Energon and Cybertron are just bad. Avoid.
Transformers Animated is pretty good. The first season is weak though. Avoid the episodes with human villains. Gets a lot of negativity from those that dislike the art style, but it's really quite good.
I'll join the group and say Beast Wars. Starts crappy at first, but it get's extremely good later on. Silverwolf, or whatever the wolf eagle bot was is still one of my faves, as well as his arc with Black Arachnia.
It has some cool callbacks to G1 though, which I guess would make that series worth watching.
You're right, for some reason they have the Autobots fight human supervillains occasionally. Yeah. But it's not that frequent.
And despite the radically different style, there's lots and lots and LOTS of G1 love in the show. Random G1 characters show up, the new Soundwave looks as close to a tape deck as they can possibly make him in this post-tape deck world, Weird Al voices Wreck-Gar, etc. Hell, there's even a little Beast Wars/Machines shout-out since Black Arachnia is techno-organic.
Also, :winky:
Yeah, Beast Wars is great. I wonder what those writers are doing now, they turned a turd of an idea into top-notch entertainment.
There was a Japanese series called Kiss Player Transformers where barely legal Japanese schoolgirls had to kiss various Autobots to activate their powers. One of the girls also referred to Optimus Prime as her "boyfriend." I don't think it was an actual cartoon, but a radio show and manga. There are various disturbing promotional pictures from it floating around the interwebs.
Here's a picture of it of a girl trying to make out with Optimus Prime even though 1) he's a robot, 2) he has no lips, and 3) HE'S A GODDAMN ROBOT.
This picture is quite atypical of Kiss Players, in that the girl isn't stripped to her undies or being slavered on by Megatron's penis-like tongue.
Now knowing this, my life is that much richer.
Anyway, my vote is to start with the animated movie. 1 reason, and it rhymes with "poor son Dells"
Don't watch the Transformers from the beginning. Instead, watch the GI Joe movie, up until it starts to suck.
Your day will be better off.
One day I'm going to just pop a movie editor open and splice the two together.
Backlog Wars - Sonic Generations | Steam!
Viewing the forums through rose colored glasses... or Suriko's Ye Old Style and The PostCount/TimeStamp Restoral Device
I wonder if you can still buy a copy anywhere. amazon I guess
that's why we call it the struggle, you're supposed to sweat